Iran-Turkey Common Borders to Work Round-The-Clock: VP

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Visiting Iranian First Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri announced that Tehran and Ankara have agreed to further facilitate bilateral trade between the two neighboring countries through making common borders operate 24 hours a day.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim in Ankara on Thursday, Jahangiri pointed to recent talks between high-ranking delegations from Iran and Turkey, saying that in the negotiations, it was agreed that common borders would work round-the-clock.

He also described tourism as one of the main areas of cooperation between Iran and Turkey and said appropriate decisions have been taken for the development of the two countries’ tourism industries.

Jahangiri also pointed to Tehran-Ankara cooperation in other fields, including oil and gas, saying that there is a possibility that oil and gas exports from Iran to Turkey increase.

Yildirim, for his part, hailed the commonalities between the peoples of the two countries and said the development Tehran-Ankara relations is the common goal of the two sides.

Jahangiri has paid a visit to Turkey to participate in the 9th Summit of the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation underway in Istanbul Friday.

He is accompanied by Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade Mohammad Shariatmadari, Minister of Road and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi, Chief of Iran’s Cultural Heritage Organization Ali Asqar Mounesan and Chief of Central Bank of Iran Valiollah Seif.

Iran and Turkey have ramped up efforts to boost bilateral trade since the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a lasting nuclear deal between Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France, and Germany).

The deal took effect in January 2016, terminating all nuclear-related sanctions on Iran.